Transnational Legal Advocacy and Cultural Rights: Civil Society Strategies and Global Norms
Keywords:
transnational advocacy, cultural rights, civil society, global norms, legal mobilization, qualitative research, TehranAbstract
This study aimed to explore how civil society actors in Tehran understand, translate, and strategically use global cultural rights norms in transnational legal advocacy. This qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with 24 civil society actors, legal advocates, cultural-rights practitioners, NGO representatives, and policy-oriented experts based in Tehran. Participants were selected through purposive sampling because of their direct experience with rights-based advocacy, cultural policy, legal mobilization, minority rights, heritage protection, artistic freedom, or international human rights discourse. Data collection continued until theoretical saturation was achieved, with saturation reached after the twenty-first interview and confirmed through three additional interviews. Interviews were conducted face-to-face or online, audio-recorded with consent, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using thematic analysis. NVivo software was used to organize transcripts, code meaning units, compare categories, and develop themes. Credibility was strengthened through member checking, peer review of coding, reflexive memo-writing, and maintenance of an audit trail. Four main categories emerged from the data: norm translation and cultural framing, evidence-based advocacy and documentation, strategic use of transnational networks, and legitimacy management under institutional constraint. Participants described global cultural rights norms as useful but insufficient unless translated into locally intelligible legal, ethical, and cultural language. Civil society strategies included reframing international standards through national legal concepts, documenting violations through credible evidence, using international networks to amplify domestic concerns, and balancing rights claims with legitimacy, security, and cultural sensitivity. The findings suggest that transnational legal advocacy for cultural rights is not a simple transfer of global norms into local contexts. Rather, it is a negotiated process in which civil society actors reinterpret international standards, build legal and moral credibility, and adapt advocacy strategies to institutional and cultural realities. Effective advocacy depends on the ability to combine global rights language with locally resonant narratives, reliable documentation, and sustainable networks.
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